


Your Mess is Mine

by fangirl0verboard



Category: The Walking Dead & Related Fandoms, The Walking Dead (Comics), The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Angst, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Falling In Love, Forbidden Love, Gentle Negan (Walking Dead), Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Love, Negan (Walking Dead) Swears, Nice Negan (Walking Dead), POV Negan (Walking Dead), Possessive Negan (Walking Dead), Protective Negan (Walking Dead), Punishment, Rape Aftermath, Rape Recovery, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Threats of Rape/Non-Con
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-05
Updated: 2017-04-10
Packaged: 2018-10-15 04:06:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10549798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirl0verboard/pseuds/fangirl0verboard
Summary: When Negan finds a young woman abused and left for dead, his morals forbid him to leave her. On rescuing her and taking her back to Sanctuary, she unintentionally begins to make his life more complicated by bringing out the best of him. Negan is torn, as she becomes the best and the worst decision that he ever made.A fic for those who want to see some humanising, reluctant sensitivity from the big bad wolf.





	1. Chapter 1. The Cabin in the Woods

**Author's Note:**

> Trigger warning: Implied rape/referenced rape and rape recovery throughout.
> 
> I'm writing this fic as a slight change from my other fic (Little Games), in third person and with a slight character tweak, as we haven't seen much sensitivity coming from Negan I wanted to write something that would humanise him in some way.
> 
> There will be some parallels with TWD universe (as in characters etc.) but there will be alternative universe elements all over where some aspects will have changed or may differentiate slightly.
> 
> Other chapters will be longer, this is just to whet your appetite.
> 
> I love comments, so please talk to me if you like it, if I don't feel like anyone is enjoying it then I'll eventually stop <3

They had watched intently for all of forty-five minutes from varying positions in the thicket, from the undergrowth, from behind a tree, and even from up a tree. Every so often, one would catch the attention of the another, and they would shake their heads in agreement that they could see nothing.

He, the leader of this band of misfits, knew that a light on didn’t always mean someone was home. As a young boy, he remembered his mother used to leave a light on in the hallway and in the bedroom at the front of the house, to give the impression that someone was at home even when they weren’t. A sensible deterrent to anyone thinking of breaking and entering. The cabin nestled in the woods that they all had their eyes set on that morning seemed silent enough, the small glow radiating from inside could have only been from a few small candles. The light was barely visible now that dawn was beginning to break.

“Alright, let’s get this shit over with. We’ve spent enough time watching it, and it’s probably not even going to be worth it. Go in first boys, two of you head on up to the second floor quietly, we might have sleepers. We’ll follow behind, signal if it’s clear.” The leader straightened up, whispering his command loud enough for all his men to hear but quietly enough to avoid announcing their arrival.

He watched his men scurry forward, when they reached the door he paused for a moment as he observed them picking the lock of the door, as it cracked open he grinned, “Atta boys.” Looking over his shoulder at the other men behind him, a scrawny blonde and a tall, handlebar-moustache faced man, he nodded for them to advance with him as the men ahead of him entered the cabin.

Inside was still and silent, the cabin was certainly lived in despite it being caked in dust and ash from the old fireplace, the only noise was the footsteps belonging to his men advancing up the creaking stairwell, until, “B-boss. We’re clear, but, you need to come and see this. N-now…” A voice called from upstairs.

“Damn it Marcus, when I say signal you know I mean for you to fuckin’ whistle, right?” The leader huffed. Without the need for cover inside the cabin, he and the others stood tall.  
“Dwighty boy, cover the door… _whistle_ and _shoot_ if we have a fuckin’ problem.” He sighed at the blonde man, turned on his heel, and made his way up the stairs. At his side, he carried his favourite weapon, a wooden baseball bat with barbed wire spiralling around it gracefully. The bat swung gently back and forth as he climbed, each stair creaking underfoot.

Gasping in shock or horror wasn’t something he usually did, he was hardened to most things, anger and rage however were emotions he could do, and he did them well. He found the other men in a small room at the back of the cabin standing in the room where the light from the candles originated from, and what he saw in front of him made his heart stop and his blood boil. He felt a heat flash across his face, and as he screwed his features up in anger, veins started to become visible across the centre of his forehead.

“Holy fuckin’ SHIT, sick fucking bastards! Whoever lives here, they die. They fuckin’ die TODAY.” He growled and as he breathed his anger out hard through his nose, he gripped his bat even tighter. In front of him was a woman, her arms chained to the wall above her head, her form completely naked. Her slender body was pale and limp, bruises, grazes and bite marks covered her from the neck down, her hair greasy and stricken with blood. The skin around the insides of her thighs was marked and bloodied the worst, it was obvious to him what the animalistic people who lived here had done to her, and why they kept her chained up. That’s when he realised that her chest was rising and falling, his eyes widened and he scrambled towards the chains, “She’s alive, help me get these off, the girl is still fuckin’ breathing! Simon, bring me a blanket, now!”

The chains didn’t have keys, but screws that unlatched the shackle when removed. His men helped him to disassemble them, and with a blanket in hand, he caught her body as she fell away from the wall toward him. He noticed that her back was marked just as badly having been subject to the friction of the wall behind it. He wrapped the blanket around her, motioned for some water from the taps in the corner of the room and began to try to wake her.

“Wake up, sweetheart,” he cooed gently, he removed from his neck a red scarf, and dipped it gently in a bowl of water that one of his men had brought to him. He softly began to wash her face with it as he spoke, “You’re safe, I just need you to wake up now.”  
The blood was crisp and dry, underneath the dry layer it was congealed, and not oozing out fresh blood as he wiped. He was confident that the wounds were a few hours old, and wondered when the people who had done this were going to return.

His men felt out of place as he tried to help the wounded girl to come around, all but one joined Dwight, and took up places in the windows to keep watch, the man who stayed crouched by his side.

“Simon,” he sighed, “have you ever seen anything like it?”

“No boss, I haven’t. I’m glad I haven’t, this is terrible. Do you need anything?” The man he addressed as Simon asked, his eyebrows furrowed in concern.

The leader shook his head silently, then let out a small, sudden gasp as the limp girl’s eyelashes twitched several times, and with difficulty she attempted to open them. As she began to realise she was in the arms of a stranger, she tried to wriggle, but her body was too weak to make any significant protest about her position.

“Shhh, no sweetheart, do not try to move. You’re safe, I’m not going to hurt you, whoever did this to you aren’t here right now… but I’m here to help you.” He soothed quietly while Simon watched them, fascinated but smiling. He noticed her eyes, a brilliant blue, but they were tired and weak as she could barely keep them open. “I can assure you, you’re very fuckin’ safe. Can you talk to me?” He asked.

The girl seemed to be focused on the handsome salt and pepper beard that hugged his jawline and chin, she was slowly digesting his words and his features, he let her take her time. After a few more moments, once her eyes had met his own and studied his eyebrows and his lips, she whimpered quietly, “Who are you?”

With a pearly white grin, he replied, “Sweetheart, I am Negan.”


	2. Give me Strength

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Negan has returned home to Sanctuary with Marina, the girl he found beaten in the woods, but something is getting to him.
> 
> A fic for those who want to see some humanising, reluctant sensitivity from the big bad wolf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: Implied rape/referenced rape and rape recovery throughout.
> 
> I'm writing this fic as a slight change from my other fic (Little Games), in third person and with a slight character tweak, as we haven't seen much sensitivity coming from Negan I wanted to write something that would humanise him in some way.
> 
> There will be some parallels with TWD universe (as in characters etc.) but there will be alternative universe elements all over where some aspects will have changed or may differentiate slightly.
> 
> \- Thanks for sticking around for chapter two! Another relatively short one, but the next one will be longer!

The broken girl lay there in his arms so still as he spoke, “Sweetheart,” he had smiled down at her, “I am Negan.” He gently continued to wipe away the dried blood, even though he knew what she needed more than anything was a warm bath, medication, anti-septic and probably food. The blood crumbled into his scarf as he ran it softly over her neck, pausing for a second, he spoke up, “Are you going to tell me your name?”  
“I’m Marina, Negan.” She replied, her voice small.

“Marina, damn that’s a pretty name.” Negan continued to wipe her skin, “Can you tell me, Marina, about the people who did this to you? If you don’t want to then I understand, but I’d at least like to know when they might come back and how many there are.”  
She stared deep into his eyes again, the contrast in the colours of their eyes captivating them both.  
“There is a clock on the wall behind you, since I’ve been here both hands have passed the number twelve about eight times. I haven’t eaten, they only gave me water and even then, it was thrown at my face. They raped me, all of them, too many times for me to count.”  
Negan shushed her, he sensed her discomfort, “Let me stop you there doll… You’ve been here for four days by that count, how many of them are there?”  
“There are three of them.” Her eyes began to water.  
“I abso-fuckin’-lutely promise you, they’re all going to die today. Slowly.”

Negan looked at Simon, he could see the look of disgust in his face too. Negan knew he had to get her back to his home as soon as possible, but he also knew that he needed to kill the men who had hurt this girl.  
“Simon, I’ve got an idea. If I leave you four here, you and Dwight in charge, do you think you could bring these assholes back to the Sanctuary? I can’t risk delaying her getting some help, even though I _really_ want to slice of their dicks and make them eat them right fuckin’ now.” Negan began to stand, with the girl still in his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder, clad in leather from his worn jacket.  
“Boss, it would be my honour, you know that.” Simon patted Negan on the back, and turned to join the two men guarding the windows.

Negan carefully carried Marina down the stairs, holding her like they were just married in the most awful circumstances, he reached Dwight at the cabin door. Dwight reeled back in shock at the sight of him holding the injured girl, who had closed her tired eyes as she rested in Negan’s arms.  
“Shit, is she dead?” Dwight asked, not knowing where to look at the sight of her battered body.  
“She’s alive, just about. Stay here, I’m taking her back, she needs help. Bring me the fuckers who live here… alive. See you later, Dwight.” Negan advanced through the door, light had scattered over the ground through the trees, so he guessed it must have been about 8am. Negan was thankful that the Sanctuary was only a thirty-minute drive away, and quietly walked back to one of the two off road four by fours that they had been driving in, he gently placed Marina into the passenger seat, making sure to buckle up her seatbelt.  
He had a bottle of water in the drinks holder, carefully he leaned over to grab it before helping her to slowly drink some.  
“Thank you, Negan.” She rasped as he pulled the blanket tighter around her, she put her arms up to hold it in place, and managed a small smile at him.

As Negan drove he let Marina rest, he felt it was best to let her initiate conversation when she was ready, even though he was usually quite the conversationalist. Negan was a man of morals, granted they were morals that he had created himself, a code that he lived by to keep control. He had met Marina under a different circumstance to how he would usually meet people, it was the first time he had met someone and not interrogated or threatened them, or requested for their belongings. She had nothing to give, she was left with nothing but her still beating heart. She reminded him of the way he was when the disease first caught hold and people began to come back from the dead as mindless, flesh eating monsters.

“They took me after they killed my brother Tommy, we had a small camp. It was just a tent set up near a small stream. They must have followed Tommy back, because they shot him in the back of the head, right in front of me. One of them hit me, and when I woke up I was in those shackles.” Marina finally broke the silence; Negan shook his head in response.

“Damn, that’s fucking awful. I’m sorry that the only thing I can do to help you is kill those pigs, I really am.” Negan sighed, knowing all too well that the second half of her story was even more gruesome than the first, “Do you trust me?” He asked, adjusting his position in the driver’s seat.

“I don’t have anything left to lose, Negan. For all I know, I’ll never work properly again. My body hurts, my insides feel like they’ve been butchered, I dread to think what I look like to you. You are helping me though, by taking me away. Can I… just ask you for one favour?” Marina stared hard at his face, he could feel her eyes watching him as anger burned within him as she spoke about what they did to her.

“Of course, doll. What is it?”

“I want to kill one of them myself.” Her voice was flat and deadly serious.

“Sweetheart, as much as I want to say hell fuckin’ yeah, and you sure as shit deserve it – are you going to be strong enough to?”

“I don’t care, I just want the one who killed my brother, that’s it.”

Negan wasn’t going to deny her the opportunity to avenge the last of her family, so he nodded in agreement, “On one condition, you have to prove to me that you’re well enough to handle the kick back on a rifle. When we get back, you’re going to get a shower and you’re getting medical treatment. You’re going to eat something and we may even have to keep them in a cell until you’re strong enough to do it, but I’m willing to let them die tomorrow or even the day after. If you get better… can you do that?”

“I can try… What kind of place do you live in, to have all of that? A shower and medical treatment?” Marina had an air of scepticism in her voice, which Negan couldn’t blame her for.

“Well, you’ll see in a moment, we’re fuckin’ home doll.” Negan slowed as he approached the big metal gates, they slid slowly open for him and closed immediately after he entered. He noticed Marina looking out of the window with big eyes fixated on the huge building that he called the Sanctuary. He parked close to a set of double doors around the side of the building, exited the vehicle and picked Marina up again.

As he started towards the doors, people around him began to kneel, and a woman in gardening slacks rushed towards the doors and propped them open for him. He could see that Marina was confused by all of this, he could tell she wanted to ask why but couldn’t find the words. His ego leapt forth, “Basically, yours truly is very highly regarded in these parts. I’m the leader of the Saviours, and this is the Sanctuary where I live. I created all of this. I’m taking you to my medic, Doctor Carson, he’s going to take a look at you.”

Negan wove through halls that seemed to snake on forever with the girl in his arms. She had fallen silent again, speechless at the idea that a man who she had so far regarded as normal had people kneeling in his presence.

Finally, Negan backed into a door, pushing it open with his shoulders.  
“Carson!” He announced, “Whatever you’re doing, don’t, this is urgent.” Negan carried the girl into the room and laid her swiftly down onto a bed, the doctor turned to her and his jaw dropped.

“Tell me what happened,” he gushed, “what’s your name?”

“Marina… I was –“

“Found her shackled to a wall in a fuckin’ cabin, she’s been there for around four days and she’s been beaten, bitten and raped multiple times by some dead men walking. Found her completely naked, all we had to cover her was a blanket. If you can start looking at her injuries, I’ll get her a robe, she’s going to need a real shower when you’ve cleaned her wounds… Princess, don’t be scared of Doctor Carson, I know doctors can be creepy as shit but this one will look after you.” Negan waited for her to nod an approval before he strode out of the room.

Now that he was alone for a few minutes, he could finally be angry. He didn’t want to lose it in front of Marina, she was probably terrified enough without having to see him explode. Negan made his way to the highest part of the Sanctuary’s living quarters where he inhabited the majority of the top floor, knowing that there were a few details he had to leave out with Marina for the time being he hoped to avoid bumping into any of his wives. The last thing a girl who had just survived rape wanted to hear, he thought, was that she was saved by a man with several sexual partners.

When Negan reached his quarters, he quickly unlocked and shut the door behind him. He propped hit bat up on a chair by the window of his office that overlooked the grounds of Sanctuary, and stared intently at the inanimate wooden object for a few moments. Of course, he was going to be angry about an innocent woman being hurt in the way that Marina had been, he thought about the scum that did it and reasoned with himself that it was perfectly fine to murder each one; no mercy and no exceptions.

There was just something else about Marina that was getting to him and he couldn’t put his finger on it, instead he just sighed to his bat, “Lucille… give me _strength_.”


	3. Too Good.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Negan gets to know the girl he saved a little better, Simon brings good news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short character building happening guys, I promise this is going somewhere! They will get longer and better *eventual smut*, I'm just so busy with my degree!!!

As Negan strode through the grey hallways of the Sanctuary compound, he thought about how he was going to kill the scumbags that had almost destroyed the young girl waiting for him downstairs, where doctor Carson was cleaning her up and checking her over. He carried a clean, towelled robe in his arms, and decided that the best place for Marina to clean up was his own private bathroom, upstairs in his quarters. It wasn’t somewhere he would let just anyone go, but he was highly aware that the showers for the residents of Sanctuary were shared and often crowded. He reasoned that it was probably the wrong place for her to be in her current state, where other people could see her.

Reaching the medical room and pushing the door open without warning, his eyes rested on Marina, sat with her back to doctor Carson. He was wiping her wounds around her neck and shoulders with a clear liquid, her face screwed up in pain from the harsh sting of the alcohol in the antiseptic. She looked to Negan, and tried to smile at him through the pain, he looked back at her sympathetically.

  
“Oh, doll. You’re doing so well. Hang in there.” Negan spoke softly as he stood in front of her delicate body, he noticed that her chest, stomach and legs had already been cleaned up. Carson gave a small cough and spoke, “I’m going to give Marina the antiseptic, there are some places meant for her eyes only that need treating. I figured that would be best.”  
  
Negan nodded in agreement, “Darlin’,” he addressed Marina, she looked up into his deep brown eyes, noticing the creases at the corners, “I’m going to take you upstairs when the doc finishes up here and you can make full use of my bathroom – completely private. I’ll have food brought up to my office for you too, and once you’ve had some rest, we can talk more… How does that sound?”

“Negan, thank you. If you hadn’t found me I think I’d be dead soon enough.” Marina’s eyes glistened with tears, she was overwhelmed with the kindness that her saviour was showing her. Negan winced internally, knowing that at some point this fragile girl was going to see him in another light. Negan was not ashamed about who he was or how he conducted himself, how he laid down the law at sanctuary and how he conducted punishments to those who broke the rules. People were afraid of him and he was happy with that, but for some reason, he didn’t want Marina to be afraid of him. He hoped that by getting to know her he’d gain her trust, and for all he knew she could be a little psychopath herself. She wanted to help him execute those men, and after all she’d asked him for that honour herself.

“Don’t think about that now, you’re more than safe here. Hopefully Simon will be back soon, with my men and with the men who did this to you… and goodness knows, I am looking forward to meeting those fuckers.”

***  
  
Negan had carried Marina through the compound with her delicate body wrapped in the robe he had brought down; the bottle of antiseptic was tucked into his back pocket. The girl’s hair was still bloodied and greasy and needed to be washed properly in warm water before doctor Carson could check for head wounds. Negan had assured Carson that he would radio for him if he found any wounds he suspected to be serious.

As Negan entered the office belonging to him that led into his personal quarters, he cradled her in his arms gently. He figured the best place to take her would be into his bedroom, as it connected to his bathroom.

“You’re very privileged to be in here you know darlin’, not everyone gets to see past my office, at least you’re going to be able to make full use of the best shower in the whole of the compound and in private. It’s best for you not to soak in the bathtub, the water could-“

“Infect the wounds from over soaking them, I know. I have a small amount of medical training and common sense.” Marina interrupted Negan, softly and with a polite smile. Negan raised his eyebrows in curiosity.

“Damn girl, so tell me,” He sighed as he set her down on the edge of his bed, “what did you do before the world went to shit?”

“I was actually a dog handler, or at least in training. Almost passed. I was working with the military. When everything went down, my squadron was too late arriving into Atlanta. Everything was already too far gone, some of us stuck together, some went their own way. I was lucky enough to find my brother when I did, he was one of the last survivors there. We travelled, and ended up here. You… you know the rest.” Her voice trailed off into sadness.

Negan breathed in, with both sympathy and an air of surprise he placed his hand over Marina’s, “I’d never fuckin’ guessed you were military. You’re gonna fit right in here, doll. Now, shower is in here.” He moved away from Marina and she looked on after him as he entered his en suite and fiddled with the taps for a moment, adjusting the temperature for her. He turned to go back to her and carry her into the bathroom, but to his surprise she had already stood and followed him in. He smiled at her.

“I’ve been able to walk since you brought me back after I got the feeling back in my legs, I just liked being carried around. It was nice, thank you.” She smiled. Negan grinned back at her, flashing his wonderfully pristine teeth.

“Well I’ll be damned, clever and fuckin’ cheeky, I’ll let you off for that one. Now I know your legs are working, but are you going to manage cleaning up without hurting yourself?” Negan took a towel from a hook on the back of the door and offered it to Marina who gently took it from his hands.

“If I need you, I’ll let you know.” She replied, Negan could see she was eager to get under the stream of water cascading from the ceiling, he nodded and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. With his back to the door, his smile turned to a frown. For the first time since people began to kneel for him, he felt a genuine worry that this newcomer to the Sanctuary would grow to hate him in the way that some of his wives did. All his wives had agreed to the terms he set out willingly, but it didn’t stop some of them from thinking he was an arrogant pig. As soon as Marina found out about his wives, he thought, it would be game over.

Even when Marina was healed and happier and the men who hurt her were dead, he didn’t know if it would be right to ask her to be one of his wives, a part of him thought that this girl was too good for him. He slumped down against the bathroom door, and his radio crackled to life, Simons voice resounding through the small speaker.

“Boss, we fucking got those pricks, and all before fucking supper time too!” Simon gleefully announced. Negan snatched the radio from the band of his trousers.

“Simon, you are my fuckin’ favourite guy in the whole wide world, you know that? Make sure they aren’t dead on arrival and get them straight into fuckin’ cells, will you? I can’t fuckin’ wait to meet these pricks.” Negan stood up quickly in anticipation, the smile returning to his face was invisible to Simon, but he was sure that he could hear it.

“Will do. Boss, is the girl doing alright?” Simon asked with an air of concern.

“She’s going to be fine Simon, I’ll see you in a little while. Lock em’ up and come to my office.” Negan strode over to the window in his bedroom, placing the radio down on his dresser as he went before he removed the bat that was attached to his waist and rested it in the corner by the door. He always left Lucille there, she had her place, ready to be snatched up in case of an emergency.

It was late in the day and the sky was turning a gentle peach colour. Negan rested both his hands on the windowsill overlooking the gates of the Sanctuary compound and pushed up the frame to breathe in the air from outside. As the girl in his bathroom nursed her wounds and washed her hair, he wondered what he was going to do with her now that she was here. The best of his people were made part of his select group of Saviours, the others worked menial jobs and the prettiest were offered a place in his bed, or a menial job if they so wished to decline.

The door of the bathroom clicked open, and Marina appeared from the steamy bathroom. She was enveloped in the robe he had given to her, with her now clean but damp hair flowing down onto her shoulders, she smiled at him; only this time he did not smile back.

_She is_ , he thought, _too good for any of my fuckin’ shit_.


End file.
